Together in the Woods
by U.Ta.Ne
Summary: The academy is going to have a week camping trip! But they're going to have it by partners...What happens if Mikan was paired up with her number one rival? Read and find out! natsumikan pairings, slight hotaruka, supposedly sequel to I'll Dance with You
1. The Big Announcement

**Together in the Woods**

A/N: Dear readers of our previous story "I'll Dance with You", we are very sorry to say that this is not considered a sequel due to one "special" kissing scene and a far connection of the plot from the one of this story's and to the previous one. Just think it is a sequel. Thank you.

Everyone here is a year older than in the manga (11 yrs.)…

Chapter 1: **The Big Announcement**

"Ohaiyo, minna!", an energetic Mikan shouted as she entered the room.

"HOTARUUU!!" Mikan shouted as she went to her friend.

_BAKA! BAKA!_

"AWW!! HOTARU YOU'RE SUCH AN EVIL FRIEND!!" Mikan said as waterfalls of tears flowed out her eyes.

Iinchou put his hand on Mikan's shoulder as he comforted her.

"Don't cry, Mikan-chan. Anyway, I don't think there's such an evil friend…" he told her warmly.

Then Natsume entered the room followed by Ruka.

"Ohaiyo, Ruka-pyon! Ohaiyo, Natsume!", Mikan greeted.

Upon hearing Ruka's name, Hotaru looked at him straight to the eye and smirked.

"Ohaiyo, Sakura." Ruka said as he looked at Hotaru who was smiling evilly at him. Ruka sweatdropped.

"So what're we wearing today, polka-dots?" Natsume commented.

"Wha--NATSUME YOU PERVERT! Why can't you be like Ruka-pyon? He's just quiet and acts like a gentleman, not like you!" Mikan shouted then smiled at Ruka who simply smiled at her.

"Tch.", Natsume said, being simply irritated.

Naru finally entered the room after a while saying, "Ohaiyo, minna!"

"Ohaiyo, sensei!" the noisy students greeted before being seated.

"Class, I have something to announce…"

"Ooh…announcement! What could it be? ...Is it good?" the class mumbled to each other.

"Okay class, I'd like to tell you that we're going to have a one-week camping trip!" Naru said enthusiastically.

Dead silence.

"What do you mean 'CAMPING TRIP'!?" Sumire shouted from the corner of the classroom.

"Well…the usual kind. We'll go hiking, building campfires, stargazing, ghost hunting and more!" Naru joyfully said.

The class suddenly became excited while others thought of plans.

But in a corner…

"G-g-ghost…h-hunting…!?" Mikan said.

"Yeah, but you'll do it with a partner." Naru told her.

"HOTARUUU!!" Mikan shouted as she reached for her friend.

But then…

"Your names are in these boxes, the pink one for the girls and the blue one, for the boys. I did it like that so I won't be picking your names twice, okay…? Anyway, I'm going to draw out names from these boxes. So if I get your name from one of those boxes, you will know your partner if I get another name from the other box."

The class understood the instructions, but something came to Mikan's head.

'_Now Hotaru can't be my partner…But…what if…NATSUME BECOMES MY PARTNER!? Wait…why am I thinking about him now..?'_

Suddenly, the voice of the very person Mikan was thinking about entered her ears.

"Hey polka-dots, stand up and get moving so we can get this thing over with." Natsume said.

"Oh…okay…" Mikan replied. _'Wait—why is he worried about me..?'_

Then one by one, everyone seemed to have a partner. It wasn't a while until…

"Sakura Mikan! Your partner for this camping trip will be…" Naru called.

Mikan was shaking in her seat. Who could be her partner for one week during a camping trip?

"Please be someone I like…please be someone I like..!" Mikan whispered to herself.

A/N: Uhh…people…sorry if the cliffhanger sucks…anyway, pls review!


	2. Partners Revealed!

Chapter 2: **Partners Revealed!**

"Sakura Mikan! Your partner for this camping trip will be…Hyuuga Natsume!"

"WHAT!? NO WAY! HOW COULD NATSUME BE HER/MY PARTNER!?!?" Mikan and Sumire shouted in unison (you know who says what; Sumire says "her partner" while Mikan says "my partner")

Naru smiled. "Let's just say it's a coincidence…Okay, moving on…"

As the teacher resumed pairing up the students, Mikan slouched in her seat and thought about the things that could possibly happen with Natsume as her partner.

'_Well, it might not be bad…He's already my partner, so maybe…things might just work out…just maybe…' _Mikan thought to herself.

After a while…

"Now for Hotaru Imai," Naru said. "Your partner will be…Nogi Ruka."

Ruka was shocked. Hotaru glared at him, smirking. This made Ruka sweatdrop.

"I think we'll have lots of fun together, don't you agree, Ruka-pyon?" Hotaru teased.

"Ggrr…Stop it! You're not funny at all!" Ruka replied.

Naru continued until everything was finished, when everyone had already found their partners.

"Okay, now, class, some of your teachers are not around so you can go to Central Town with your partners later or tomorrow so you can buy and prepare the things you will be needing for the trip." Naru informed. "Camping starts on Sunday at 8AM in the Northern Woods. We meet here at 7AM so we can check whatever things are needed, or who are not present."

"Okay!" the class answered with much tone of excitement in their words.

"Well, ja-ne!" the teacher said as he walked out the room.

The class was really excited for Sunday to come. Some of them went to talk with their partners about the things to be brought. Some thought of plans for the said activity.

Almost everyone was planning things with their partners except for Mikan and Natsume. They stayed silent in their seats, thinking of other things.

"So, wanna go to Central Town?" Mikan heard Yuu ask his friends.

"Sure!"

"'Kay!"

Then Yuu looked at Mikan, who was in a corner, depressed. He went to ask her if there was a problem.

"Uhh…Mikan-chan…Is something the matter?"

Mikan stared at him then said, "Northern Woods! First, Natsume the pervert, then ghost hunting! Now it's the Bear and Piyo! This camping trip is going to be the worst part of my life! Plus, Hotaru's not my partner!"

"I-it's…okay…maybe sometime, you'll get on with it. And besides, Natsume's not that harsh. Someday you might even be…friends!"

"Yeah, right…" the brunette replied sarcastically.

After class, Hotaru and Ruka met up with Mikan and Natsume outside the classroom, both coming from opposite directions.

"Well, the pairings for the camping trip are quite interesting." Hotaru said, giving Ruka a look, making him blush, yet sweatdrop, _again._

Natsume and Mikan looked at each other. "Hmpf." both said with a look.

-After Central Town-

-Alice Elem. Dormitory-

Everyone in Class B was excited, too excited they can't sleep.

But Mikan was really nervous.

"Ooh…a whole week with Natsume! Why do I have to pair up with him!?" she said while walking down the hall and to her room. Suddenly, she bumped onto someone and fell on the floor.

"Watch it, will ya, polka-dots!?" Natsume said.

Mikan looked at him then stood up, brushing off the dust on her dress. "What, it's my fault again!?"

"It always is!"

"Yeah right, blind pervert!"

"Well I wouldn't have bumped onto you if you looked at your way!"

"Fine! It's my fault! Happy now!?" Mikan said as she walked to her room and slammed the door. _'Why can't he be nice to me ever for once?'_

"…Mikan…" Natsume whispered to himself.

-Next day; Sunday 8AM-

-Classroom-

The class was noisy as they discussed plans for the activity ahead. Everyone seems to be out of their seats, talking to their friends and partners while others made last checks to their equipment. The only ones who weren't out of their seats were Natsume and Mikan.

Then suddenly, a loud noise was heard.

"GIVE THOSE BACK! DO IT NOW!"

Everyone turned their heads as Hotaru entered the classroom riding her…duck scooter (lol…) but it was on air. After a while, Ruka entered the classroom with a bunch of animals at the corridor.

"Oh Ruka-pyon, want me to let the others know what you've been doing lately?" Hotaru said.

Ruka heard whispers from their fangirls from behind.

"J-just give it back!"

On with the chase, but Narumi entered the room after a while.

"Well class, excited?"

"YES!!" the class shouted with big smiles formed on their faces.

"Okay! Now why don't we line up now? Go with your partners, okay? So you won't get lost." Naru joyfully said.

The class followed directions and lined up with their partners.

But still, Mikan didn't want to go. She stayed still on her seat.

"Mikan-chan?" Naru said, approaching her.

"I don't want to go…"

"What's the matter? Is something wrong?"

"I don't wanna go…I-I'm…scared…"

Naru continued comforting Mikan while the others assembled outside. But even if they thought Natsume was outside, he was in the corridor, listening to Naru and Mikan.

Natsume entered and said, "…I'm sorry…".

Finally, Naru convinced Mikan to go with Natsume to the camping trip.

Mikan gave off a no-choice look and lined up with Natsume, but she didn't look at him. Later, Natsume asked her a question.

"Hey, what took you so long?"

"None of your business."

'_Of course it's my business! I'm your partner, remember?'_ Natsume thought.

"Okay class, get ready now. We're gonna ride the bus in just a while now." Naru told the children. After a while, the bus came.

A/N: If you were wondering who won the chase, Hotaru did. She kept the camera with pics of Ruka bonding with the little animals. 


	3. Entering the Forest

Chapter 3: **Entering the Forest**

-Skip bus scene…-

-Northern Forest-

"We're here!" Naru said cheerfully. The students were so full of energy.

Everyone except Ruka, Natsume and Mikan. (Just to tell you, Ruka just ran out of energy.)

"This is going to be a very FUN trip, won't it, Ruka?" Hotaru said mischievously.

"Uh…ye-yeah…" Ruka answered nervously.

Meanwhile, Mikan and Natsume were already trying to find a good place to set up camp. They snubbed each other for a while, but later, as they got deeper and deeper into the forest, Mikan suddenly clung onto Natsume.

"L-Let's…s-stop h-h-here…" Mikan said, shivering.

Natsume was silent.

"P-P-please..?"

"Tch."

Mikan frowned. "Natsume, you're so cold-hearted and cruel! I'm the most unlucky person in the world right now! Hmpf!"

Then Natsume put his bag down. "If you're not gonna move, then we won't stay here. Now get going, polka-dots."

Suddenly, the leaves on the nearby bushes started to move. Mikan screeched as she clung onto Natsume's arm.

"O-o-okay…"

They started to walk again when the leaves moved again.

Mikan was still holding Natsume's arm but Natsume was already a little irritated. So he removed his arm from Mikan's touch and went nearer to the bushes. He got closer and closer when suddenly…

…Ruka's rabbit jumped onto Natsume.

Mikan held her chest, breathing in relief. "So that was the one making the leaves move, alright."

"…"

"…so…where's Ruka?" Natsume asked the rabbit.

Then Mikan and Natsume were hearing footsteps go nearer to their directions.

Suddenly, Ruka appeared out of the bushes and ran to a tree. He hid behind it which made Mikan and Natsume wonder why he was here.

"Ruka..?"

"Ssshhh!"

"Doshite?" Mikan asked.

Unexpectedly, a raven-haired girl appeared from the bushes, riding a duck scooter.

"I heard him. Is Ruka there?" Hotaru asked as she got down from her scooter, carrying a camera with her.

Natsume looked at the rabbit, thinking of what to say. Then he saw Ruka shaking his head in a response of a "no".

"Uhh…he's not here…" Mikan said.

"Really…" Hotaru said as she knows Mikan was _never_ good at lying. "Then what's that rabbit doing here?" she asked, pointing at Ruka's rabbit which was on Natsume's hands.

"W-we…found him here! …I-I think he lost it…" Mikan replied.

"Y-yeah…" Natsume said.

"He's there behind that tree, isn't it?" Hotaru asked again while pointing at the tree in which Ruka was hiding.

"…N-No! H-He's not!" Mikan answered again.

"Well then…"

Hotaru walked towards _that_ tree and looked behind. But--she saw no one.

"Okay, now I believe you." she said as she walked away.

Ruka now showed himself while breathing fast.

"Why? What happened..?" Natsume and Mikan asked.

Ruka didn't want them to know but…

"See?" Ruka stood up and showed himself wearing a skirt.

"Uhh. . . . . . ."

"What happened..!?" Natsume asked.

"…You se…a while ago, Imai intentionally spilled juice all over my pants. Of course, I was forced to change. So I went to the…tent and brought my things with me. I hung my pants somewhere but she took it…and I was forced to wear…this…" Ruka told them. "Once I got out, I noticed flashes from her camera while Kokoroyomi and Mochu were laughing at me. Clear?"

"O-ohh…" Mikan and Natsume replied in unison. Then the two of them were silent until Mikan suddenly covered her mouth.

"Sakura? Is something wrong..?" Ruka asked while trying to detect something smelling a little…suspicious.

Mikan shook her head while trying her best to cover her mouth until she finally gave in.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!! Ruka-pyon wa kawaii!!" She burst out laughing.

"…" Natsume had no comment.

While Mikan was on the floor laughing, Natsume gave Ruka his rabbit while telling him to leave.

"You better go now…" he said, pointing to Mikan crying tears of laughter.

Ruka sweatdropped. "Err…yeah, sure."

As Ruka ran off, Natsume lit a small fire on the tip of one of Mikan's pigtails. She immediately stopped laughing and started running around, shouting at him. After a while, the fire was lit off.

"W-w-what was that for!?" she shouted.

"We're setting up camp here. So, you want it here or we go deeper?"

Mikan immediately thought of ghosts, Piyo-Piyo and Mr. Bear.

"No way! You want that bear to beat me up again!?"

"Fine. Then start moving, Ichigo-kara."

He went to set up the tents while Mikan helped, although she was REALLY MAD at him for calling her "Ichigo-kara".

Meanwhile, deep in the forest, Hotaru and Ruka were still chasing each other…

Ruka was breathing fast. He knew she was catching up with him, so he hid behind some bushes.

Then he heard her voice. She was calling him.

"Ruka-kun? Where are you? I know you're here somewhere so better come out now, because you know what'll happen to these photos…" she teased.

'_Darn! Did she see me…or she really knew that I'd go here!?' _Ruka thought.

Hotaru heard Ruka panting, so she went closer to where he was. Ruka didn't notice nor hear her, since she was walking behind him, floating with her scooter. She took out her baka-gun out of nowhere and…

_BAKA!_

Hotaru shot one out but missed. Ruka looked back and found her there, so he ran as fast as he could to stay away from being embarrassed.

Back to Mikan and Natsume…

Natsume and Mikan's tent and things were already set on that particular place and they had nothing else to do. So Mikan suggested they walk around for a while. She thought, maybe they could find some of their classmates around.

"Natsume, let's go!" Mikan said as she grabbed Natsume's hand and ran off with him.

"Where're you taking me? You don't even know your way around here." he said.

Mikan looked at him and smiled. "Don't worry! You're here, so we won't get lost."

"Oh really?" he pointed to a small cottage house a few meters away.

Mikan looked and saw…Bear.

"Uh-oh…" Mikan commented when Bear heard her and looked at her straight to the eye.

A/N: Ichigo-kara: Mikan's other nickname made by Natsume which means "strawberries girl".

Uhh…dear reader…just tell us if there was anything wrong in our chapters… Anyway, pls. review!


	4. Watch Out!

Chapter 4: **Watch Out!**

Natsume and Mikan sweatdropped as Bear's eyes flashed angrily. It dropped its broom and started to prepare itself.

"See ya," Natsume said as he walked off.

"W-wait just a sec! Natsu--" she couldn't finish her words as Bear prepared an uppercut on Mikan.

"Natsume..? NATSUME!!" Mikan shouted when Bear suddenly attacked her straight to her head. Then it started attacking her continuously until she fell unconscious on the floor, crying out waterfalls of tears from her eyes.

"…Why couldn't anybody help..?" she complained. Natsume appeared behind a tree as soon as Bear left her on the ground.

"Heh, weak little girl…need help?" Natsume said, smirking.

"Natsume!!" Mikan angrily stated while standing up anime style. But, being usually weak, she couldn't stand properly.

"O-oi…" Natsume said with a little concern as he ran to Mikan and held her so she could stand.

"Oww…my knees hurt…" the brunette complained as she touched her bruised knee.

"Climb on." Natsume said, bending down.

"Huh..?"

"Climb on my back if you don't want to walk."

"…You sure it's okay?"

"Just do it."

"Umm…okay…thanks." Mikan replied, blushing as she climbed on the boy's back.

All the way they were walking, Natsume had Mikan carried on his back. It was a pretty long walk, but the two found themselves a little lost.

Along the way, Mikan asked, "Uhm…you're not tired, are you..?"

"Tch. I'm not as weak as you, ya know." Natsume replied teasingly. But surprisingly, Mikan didn't say anything to his words. Instead, she said,

"Thanks, Natsume."

"…"

Meanwhile, the chase moves on (you know who we're talking about here alright.).

'_Kuso! Why can't she leave me alone?' _Ruka thought.

He was trying to outrun Hotaru, who decided it was best if she rode on one of her inventions, so she rode on her…duck scooter (heh).

"Ruka-kun? You know you can't hide from me. You're here, alright…", she called out.

'_Dammit! She's catching up!' _Ruka thought. Then he saw a few bushes on his left. There were no poisonous plants around, so he dived into one of them He was resting a few minutes until he heard footsteps. He prepared a little and saw Hotaru walking around.

"So you won't come out? Fine, I guess I'll just have to sell your photos to the animals, then. That is, if you don't want them anymore.", she said.

"NO WAY! GIVE ME BACK THOSE PHOTOS!" Ruka shouted, revealing himself to Hotaru.

Hotaru, however, was a quick and nimble girl herself. She quickly hopped on her scooter when he was less than an inch away from her. And the chase continues.

-X-

A few minutes passed and they still weren't tired of chasing each other. Then Ruka had an idea. Since the photos were inside the backpack of Hotaru, because it was exposed, he could call the birds to help him get it. So he pulled out some kind of whistle from his pocket and blew it. Hotaru looked back and said, "What's the noise?"

At once, crows flew out of the forest and went to Ruka's aid. He told them, "Get those pictures!" while pointing the photos.

Following his orders, the crows launched themselves towards Hotaru who frowned at the sight of the birds. So letting go of one of the handles (on her scooter), she swiftly pulled out her baka gun out of her backpack. "Really, don't interfere with our business." She said coldly as she aimed and shot each bird without any misses.

"Imai! You're so cruel!" Ruka shouted as he ran past the pile of unconscious birds. Then, looking back, he said to the birds, "Don't worry, I'll make sure she pays for this!" as little twinkly diamonds appeared in his eyes. The birds also had these twinkly eyes, while little bubbles and diamonds appeared in the pink background. Ruka's hair was also flying slow motion, while shedding a few drops of tears.

-_CLICK!- -CLICK - –CLICK –_

The special effects disappeared as the sound of a clicking camera popped up. Ruka, still devastated at the thought that his little bird friends were hurt, looked forward and saw a camera in Hotaru's hands. She was looking at him, wearing a mischievous smile on her lips.

"IMAII!!" Ruka angrily shouted at Hotaru, who was taking pictu him a while ago. And…the chase continues…

Meanwhile, Natsume and Mikan had already found their tents just a while ago. Natsume let Mikan off his back.

"Stay still." Natsume said as he took his handkerchief from his pocket and wet it with some water they brought. Then he held Mikan's knee to bandage it. With that, Mikan was blushing hard.

Mikan thought, _'Why is he doing this..!? Why is it that sometimes, he's kind and sometimes, he's…not? And why is my heart beating so…fast!?'_

"O-ouch!" the brunette complained when Natsume tightened the cloth on her knee.

"Stay still!"

After Natsume was done with her knee, he saw Mikan holding her elbow. He removed her hand from her elbow and saw it also bruised.

Natsume was thinking, the towel's too big, WAY too big, clothes are also too big…If it were other things else, they might need it for other days.

"H-hey...!" Mikan said, still blushing.

Since Natsume can't find any other appropriate cloth for bandaging her bruised elbow, he ripped off the sleeve of his shirt, wet it and placed it on her elbow.

"N-Natsume!? What are you trying to do?"

Natsume kept silent as he wrapped Mikan's elbow. With this, she blushed even harder.

"Uhh…t-thanks…Natsume…"

"Rest here for a while. I'll go find someone who could help."

Suddenly, Mikan held his hand.

"What now?"

"Umm…I just…want t-to…say…t-thanks again…" Mikan said, blushing.

"You've been saying that again and again. Now I have to go." Natsume said as he removed his hand from Mikan's.

Once Natsume left the tent, Mikan held the cloth wrapped on her elbow and smiled warmly.

A/N: Geez…no wonder Bear could be REALLY useful in GA fanfics! Knocking out our very idiot, bringing Natsume and Mikan closer! Anyway…sorry for late updation…our internet connection was...inactive for 2 days…sorry… Well, thanks for reading! Pls. review:D


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